Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Rainer Seele, Chairman of the Executive Board of OMV, signed in Vienna an Agreement to extend until 2040 the existing contract between Gazprom Export and OMV Gas Marketing & Trading GmbH for Russian gas supplies to Austria. The contract was valid until 2028.

The document was signed in the presence of Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Sebastian Kurz, Federal Chancellor of Austria, as part of the celebrations marking 50 years of supplies of Russian gas to Austria.

“The Agreement signed today is yet another testament to the growing need for gas imports both in Austria and Europe in general – the need that Gazprom is ready to satisfy. By implementing the construction project for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, we will make gas deliveries even more reliable for the benefit of consumers,” said Alexey Miller.

“By 2030, the European Union will have to import more than 80 per cent of the needed natural gas. By extending this gas supply contract, we will provide Austria and other European countries with natural gas despite the increase in demand. Moreover, it will allow us to reduce CO2 emissions,” said Rainer Seele.

Gazprom’s visit to Vienna also included working meetings of Alexey Miller with Elisabeth Koestinger, Austrian Minister for Sustainability and Tourism, and Margarete Schramboeck, Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs.

The gas cooperation became the overarching theme of the meetings, as the parties discussed the importance of natural gas – the cleanest fossil fuel – in Austria’s energy mix, of which it accounted for about 23 per cent.

It was noted that Gazprom had established itself as a reliable gas exporter attuned to the needs of the Austrian market and always ready to meet the rapidly growing consumer demand for natural gas.

Special emphasis was placed on the Nord Stream 2 project. The participants in the meetings pointed out that the efforts to build new gas transmission capacities, such as a new gas pipeline stretching across the Baltic Sea, took on great significance amid the decline in indigenous production in Europe.